Slick 60's

Looking For Some New Tires For My 64' F250. I've Got These Huge Farm Tires And The Pitman Arm Drag Link Is Scraping The Inner Side Wall When Making Tight Left Hand Turns. I Recently Had The Pleasure Of Hanging Out And Talking With Chris (Ezernut9mm) He Suggested A 215/75R16.. I Plan On Lowering The Front Of The Truck 3" And The Rear 6" With Mono Leafs. That Being Said, What Would Be The Proper Size Tire To Alleviate The Rubbing Sidewall Issue, And Work Profile Wise With The Lowered Leaf Springs? Chris Has Passenger Car Tires On His Uni, Are Passenger Car Tires An Option With A 3/4 Ton Pickup? The Local Tire Guy Says No, I Need 10 Ply Tires. I Don't Plan On Hauling Anything Heavier Than My Bicycles Or Maybe A Stray Couch Here Or There.. I Know That This Has Probably Been Covered On This Forum From An F100 Perspective. Any Advice On 8-Lug 16" Tires? Thanks In Advance For Any Insight, And Thanks Again Chris...

Okay, here goes. The 64F250 isn't a whole lot different than a 100. You can change the spindles and brakes etc. on the front, and then use half ton wheels tires etc. Same goes for the rearend by changing the whole things, and I would suggest going to half ton springs at the same time, or deleting some leafs. From my own usage of both half and 3/4 ton 64's I like the 3/4 ton better for drivablility. For some reason it just drives better. Don't know if that is a result of bigger tires, higher stance or the truck being in better condition. So when you go into a project like this be sure it's the way you want to go. There few ways of doing what you want with an f250, but you can run smaller tires to a certain extent. If you want car tires then the half ton option is most likely your best bet. I get the feeling that you would really like to have a low rider with 17 inch tires. I'm just guessing at that though. You really need to think everything thru before you jump in any direction. What you are going for is not cheap in any direction.

Rich

Dont know about 64s but my 63 had adjustable steering stops. I was wearing out the inside of my left tire before I adjusted them.

I'm Wanting A Slightly Smaller Narrower Tire With A Street Tread.. Those Knobby All Terrain Tires Are Hard To Turn. My Arms Aren't As Strong As They Used To Be... I Don't Think My Truck Has Steering Stops. I Will Check It Out This Morning.......

OK, I Do Have Steering Stops. I Will Try Adjusting Them. Looks Like I Have About 1/2" Of Adjustment There. That Should Work. Thanks.

all of these trucks came from the factory with skinny tires.

the wider they are the more effort you put into steering non ps trucks.

only time i ever had an issue with rubbing the pittman was with 40s on my 69 4x4.

a minor adjustment of the steering stops is ok but be aware this cuts down on the turning radius and too much will result in lots of back and forth steering to turn around in a tight spot.

Thanks Brian, Seems Like I'm Already Having That Issue With The Steering. The Tires I Have On It Are These Macky-Ass 235/85R16's Pulling In My Garage From The Alley Is Tight, And It Takes A Few Back & Forth Try's To Pull In. Its A Herculean Task, And My Arms Feel Like Spaghetti When Its All Said And Done. Maybe I Should Just Get A Membership At The Local Gym And Bulk Up My Arms LOL....

Shadow wrote:Thanks Brian, Seems Like I'm Already Having That Issue With The Steering. The Tires I Have On It Are These Macky-Ass 235/85R16's Pulling In My Garage From The Alley Is Tight, And It Takes A Few Back & Forth Try's To Pull In. Its A Herculean Task, And My Arms Feel Like Spaghetti When Its All Said And Done. Maybe I Should Just Get A Membership At The Local Gym And Bulk Up My Arms LOL....

235s are not all that that big.
biggest i had on my 66 4x4 was 265x75x16 , did not have any issues other than speedometer was off a bit
currently have 8.75 x 16.5 which are considerably smaller.

since i never drive power steering theres no noticing more effort, and the 4x4 does have a bigger steering wheel but my wrecker and the wifes f100 4x4 have the 2wd smaller wheel and theres not any problem with those, wrecker has 8.75 too and the f100 has 31s

gym costs money, my plan is better:
split more wood, shovel more snow

Get a bigger steering wheel. Better leverage.

If I Got A Bigger Steering Wheel I Wouldn't Be Able To Fit In The Truck, It's A Tight Fit Already. I Guess I Should Work My Abs While Im At The Gym As Well. LOL>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

are your king pins good dana?

ezernut9mm wrote:are your king pins good dana?

Hey Chris, The Passenger Side Needs To Be Replaced I'm Sure, There Is A Slight Wobble. The Drivers Side Is Tight, It's Definitely Near The Top Of My To Do List.. I Will Probably Need To Buy A Bigger Hammer Before Trying To Tackle Those Things. LOL............

The tires rubbing most likely has caused several pieces wto wear on you front end. You need to check out the bushings in the front springs along iwth steering gearbox and all related steering compnents. Be sure to replace the tires as soon as possible. The metric conversion that we have on tire sizes has had me cofused for years. Most likely the 7.50 isze is what you need to look for or it's equivilant. I've lived thru the original sizing to letter sizing and eventually to the metric. Sizes are realted to the different numbers o the tires. The first number is related to width and the second is realted to height, if I remmember correctly. You may want to think about power steering. You can buy the original style new for about 900$ the last time I checked. However, my 64 drives like a dream. steers easily and handles nicely and it doesn't have power steering. One thing I would suggest, is be sure to buy 10 ply rating tires. That is 6 ply today commonly reffered to as E rated I believe. Stiffer side walls. Have you checked the tire rating on the ones you have? The softer side walls let the tire bulge on the side more.

Rich

some good points Rich

0ne has to watch out for the 16" passenger car tires used on some trucks and most suvs like exploders etc. these days,as they are low pressure and have weak sidewalls and not made for heavy loads. this is one of the reasons i ended up with a few sets of 16.5 i am currently using which are commercial E rating tires they take 80 psi not 35-40 which makes a big difference in steering. i get my tires from a friends towing yard and there were lots that i would not use due to the load range but thats what were on the newer stuff that got pulled before they went to the crusher.

this has charts showing the difference in tires

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/ ... ?techid=55

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/ ... ?techid=55
P vs LT
"LT-metric sized tires were specifically developed for use on light trucks and provide the full tire load capacity branded on their sidewall. They are the little brothers of the heavy-duty tires fitted to 18-wheelers and busses, and use the same basic engineering guidelines regarding load capacity. Because of this, LT-metric sized tires are built very strong, and use higher inflation pressures to carry a given load in order to provide the desired safety margin."

just because you do not often or ever carry loads in your truck does not mean you should not use truck tires.

remember slicks were designed to do truck work, not for soccer mama to go grocery shopping in.

I Will Go With A 10-Ply Truck Tire, Just With A Street Tread. Easier To Steer, Your Right Brian Going To The Gym Is NOT An Option....

i like these
goodrich commercial ta all season
they have held up well for me

ICEMAN6166 wrote:i like these
goodrich commercial ta all season
they have held up well for me

Those Look Just About Right. Probably A Smooth Ride, The All Terrain Tires I Have Now Ride Like A Stagecoach. (Sorry About That Last Post, I Almost Pissed Myself Laughing)

Shadow wrote: (Sorry About That Last Post, I Almost Pissed Myself Laughing)

a real workout , for man and truck.

ICEMAN6166 wrote:

Shadow wrote: (Sorry About That Last Post, I Almost Pissed Myself Laughing)

a real workout , for man and truck.

We Have Had A Whole 2" Of Snow This Year, (Can't Shovel Snow) We Don't Have A Wood Burning Stove (Can't Chop Wood) Can't Surf (Landlocked In Kansas) I Would Probably Parish Or Wouldn't Last Long In Alaska....

Shadow wrote: My Arms Aren't As Strong As They Used To Be... My Arms Feel Like Spaghetti When Its All Said And Done. Maybe I Should Just Get A Membership At The Local Gym And Bulk Up My Arms LOL....

Instead of going to a gym, sounds like you just need to drive your truck more......

BarnieTrk